'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/2wBDAAYEBQYFBAYGBQYHBwYIChAKCgkJChQODwwQFxQYGBcUFhYaHSUfGhsjHBYWICwgIyYnKSopGR8tMC0oMCUoKSj/2wBDAQcHBwoIChMKChMoGhYaKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCj/wgARCAAHAAoDASIAAhEBAxEB/8QAFQABAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABQb/2gAIAQEAAAAALof/xAAUAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAC/9oACAECEAAAAB//xAAUAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAB/9oACAEDEAAAAD//xAAjEAABAgUDBQAAAAAAAAAAAAACAwUAAQQGFAcREhdCdYHi/9oACAEBAAE/ALQtlpdaInJ8YFnjKpAVkglV4wjIC47D6GOn9m92mrgJef8AqP/EABsRAAIBBQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAECAAMRIVGh/9oACAECAQE/AKDlhnbca0//xAAWEQADAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAQL/2gAIAQMBAT8AtH//2Q=='%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Chennai Super Kings (CSK) opening batsman Ruturaj Gaikwad smashed a splendid century against the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Abu Dhabi today. He was on 95 with one ball to go in the first innings. But Gaikwad bought up his century on the last ball of the innings with a nonchalant hit over the boundary.
Courtesy of his magnificent knock of 101*, CSK scored 189/4 after 20 overs. Ravindra Jadeja (32* in 15 balls) played a useful cameo to give CSK's innings a strong finish. It will be interesting to see if Rajasthan Royals can chase down this total or not.
Fans were elated to witness such a high-class knock from Ruturaj Gaikwad and took to Twitter to shower praise on him. Some of them even predicted that he might become the next big thing in Indian cricket in the future.
Here are some of the best reactions:
I was just looking to time the ball and maintain my shape: Ruturaj Gaikwad after his sensational century
Speaking on the IPL broadcast during the mid-innings break, Ruturaj Gaikwad opened up about his scintillating knock and revealed his thought process through the first innings. The current orange cap holder said:
"The wicket was holding up a bit initially today. Rajasthan bowlers started well in the powerplay. My plan was to bat till the 13th or 14th over and then capitalize on the start later. I was just looking to time the ball and maintain my shape."
He added:
"At the end of the day, the team score is more important. The individual score doesn't matter unless and until the team is winning. We were looking for 160 initially, then I thought 170 would be good enough, and then 180 and finally, we got 190. I timed that ball(final ball of the innings) well, and it was the shorter boundary, so I knew it was going to be a six. We need to bowl well and execute our plans in the second innings."
Rajasthan got off to a flying start as both openers scored runs at a rapid pace in the powerplay. The onus is now on the RR middle-order to steer their team towards the target after getting a splendid start.
Brand-new app in a brand-new avatar! Download Cric Rocket for fast cricket scores, rocket flicks, super notifications and much more!
Poll : Will Ruturaj Gaikwad be the next skipper of CSK after MS Dhoni?
Yes
No
270 votes
